Things I love

I have been running into things I absolutely love and I thought I would share them with you!

As you know I am searching for wallpaper for my little bathroom.  One day I stumbled upon Jessica Swift.  I instantly fell in love.  These are the samples I ordered....

Banana-Magnolia

Divya

String-rose

She also has fabric!  I ordered some of that too.  So we'll see which wallpaper I end up choosing.

Another thing I love is printing coupons at Target.com

  I love the fact that you can use a Target coupon WITH a manufacturer coupon on one item.  You hit the jackpot even more if it is on sale and if it's a buy 3 get a gift card deal!!  I also signed up for a Target debit card to get an extra 5% off each time I shop.


Water.  I love water.  What I love more is adding fresh squeezed lemon juice to ice water.  It is so good.

Yesterday my 16 yr old and I had an itching to get out of the house and do some shopping.  We drove down to CoonRapids and try as we may we could not spend one dime.  That is a good thing and I'm glad it happened, but we found two things I am now in love with.

1.  By the register at Caribou Coffee they have little dark chocolate squares with sea salt.  They are a bit spendy for the size ...... .59 cents but oh boy were they good!  So salty and sweet!

2.  We stopped by the healthy food store to pick up some cod liver oil ( that's good too)... they didn't have any so we perused the store and found the most heavenly chocolate bar ever...
 Chocolove xoxox Almonds & Sea Salt in Dark Chocolate

I'm so in love I may try and find a case of them, the sea salty almond dark chocolate OH YUM!

You know what else I love??  Farm fresh eggs.  I have one every morning.

Do you have anything you just love and want to share?  Let me know!

P.S.   which wallpaper should I choose?

New Lollibag's and Redecorating..

Hello friends,

I know I have been in my home less than a year but I have the itch to redecorate.  I'd love some gaudy, bright, floral wallpaper, huge crystal chandeliers and a bright orange sofa.  Problem is, like my BFF and I always say.......it takes money.  But I am going to tackle one room at a time and my first project is my 3/4 bath.  I'll keep you posted....

Here are some new Lollibags :)

This one sold right away, it was so bright and cheery!  Love Heather Bailey fabric.

I miss home

June 16 will mark one year ago that we drove out of our farm in Oregon.  It was so exciting but also bittersweet.  I love a new adventure but I also like same ole boring.  I am truly grateful for all God has done with this move.  My husband has a wonderful job, my son's have both found work with company's that offer a lifelong career.  My family is here.  We have found a nice little church......
So why do I miss home so much?  It was very hard to leave Oregon, but I was under the impression that since it was a God thing, I would love Minnesota.
But still yet, I know God does not promise us happiness, but he does take care of us, and that he has done.  This verse keeps popping into my mind:

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do everything through him who gives me strength.  Philippians 4:12-13

I think I am supposed to be learning this, to be content and rely on God's strength.  I am so grateful that we had those years in Oregon, met the people we did and had the experiences we had.  On to the next adventure!  (whatever it is)

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers

New Little Lolli

I just finished this Little Lollibag.  It has vintage chenille ruffles on the front and is made from a Heather Bailey fabric, it is very heavy cotton.  It has a removable hot pink flower pin/clip.  Will be on etsy soon!

Have a glorious Palm Sunday!

My new studio Part 1

Hello!  Well, I went back to that Goodwill and bought the vintage salad cookbook.  Yes I did, it has a whole section on "Molds".  Did any of my followers eat molds growing up?  As in, the gross molds?  Tuna molds?  Avacado molds?  Gelatin molds with sour cream and worcestershire sauce?   I am now obsessed with these creations.....I may even bring one to the next family holiday dinner just as a joke.

Ok, as you know I love Where Women Create magazine.  I would love to have my own space to create like that.  I have always done my creating in my dining room and everyone holds it against me that we don't have dinners at the dining room table because it's full of fabric and buttons.

Well that is going to change, hopefully sooner rather than later.  There is a room above our garage and that is going to be my studio!  Right now the stairs are in the garage.

We have been wracking our brains trying to figure out how to get them in the house.  First we were going to incorporate them into the laundry room which is just right inside the house by the stairs now.  Then we were going to have them come out in the dining room, but the latest which I am loving is having them come out in the house where my pantry is right now by the kitchen.

Going up.

It's a great space.  Very roomy.  I am a bit worried about light, so we are going to add dormers to the wall on the left for two more windows.  That is what will slow this project down, I'm not sure when we'll be ready to do that.

Dormer wall.  There are lots of outlets for all of our sewing machines.

This is the pantry where the stairs will go up, it is right over the stairs going to the basement.  It's a mess isn't it?  We will still make our laundry room bigger, so I can move the pantry storage in there. 

The door in the hallway that is closed is the pantry.  So the plan is to open the wall up on the left side of that door so there will be an open stairway and railing.  I hope we can, I would love that openess.  To the left is the dining room where I now sew.

If you have any bright ideas, I'll take them!

My thrift store finds

Friday was the first day of spring break and my son Nic's first day of freedom, he graduated early!  My son's, Josh and Nic,  have just purchased a cute little 1950's home and are about to leave the nest. Probably more on that later, I may need some therapy having 2 children leave at once...... So today I took Nic shopping for the new house.  We went to 2 Goodwill's, Salvation Army, a thrift store called... Thrift Store and good ole Walmart. 
It was so fun finding bargains for the boys, dinner plates from the 1970's that were 50% off, so .49 each!  We found small plates to match, bowls, silverware, Fire King casseroles.  Nic even found some plaques with the 10 commandments on them, he said it would be good to have those posted.  I agree.

I found a few things too.  First I found these nesting bowls, they are not vintage, but I love the bright colors!

I also found a vintage Tupperware Cake Taker!  And it's in great shape.  I have always wanted one, but I don't know where I'll store it or when I'll use it.  I asked Nic... Nic, do I really  need this?  I mean when am I going to take a cake somewhere??  He said.... You'll bring a cake to my house!  SOLD!

Do you have any cast iron frying pans?  I have always wanted some genuine cast iron frying pans... Well I hit the jackpot!  I found this box, see the vintage sticker?

La Belle's distributing?  See it?  Yep that's vintage alright, AND the set of 3 cast iron frying pans are BRAND NEW vintage, never used, still have the inside sticker inside the frying pan!

Do you love that?  I was instantly sold.

Sometimes I wish I wasn't so AFFECTED by vintage items.  I'm still not sure what it is about something like this that draws me in.

Oh and I wish I weren't so DRAWN to vintage cookbooks either!  Here are the two I brought home with me.  They are from the 1960's.

There was another vintage cookbook I was looking at, that was all salads.  A lot of the recipes were jello salads.  Some of them were so disgusting sounding it was downright horrid thinking of eating them.  Molds, they called them, a jello mold with tuna fish.  EWWW  I should have bought it just so I could have read the recipes in awe that someone used to make those!  Heck, maybe people still do somewhere!  Next time I go to that Goodwill I will see if it's still there. 

There was a picture of a "mold" of lime jello with lettuce in it!!!!  Geez, now I wish I would have gotten that darn book!  It's astonishing isn't it??

barn, junk, vintage, antique~sales

First I want to ask, what's the weather like where you are??  Well it is truly abnormal here!  77 in Minnesota yesterday and warm and humid today too!  I am loving it, but........... after hearing about the tornado's in Michigan, well,  maybe the weather should just stick to normal!

Back in Oregon I knew where all the good sales were, occasional sales, barn sales, antique shops, vintage/junk sales.  I even traveled to Washington and Idaho to sell Lollibag's at a couple..

With this nice weather I am just itching to get out and find a good sale!  I just don't know where to start... I know of Junk Bonanza in the fall but I am usually selling Lollibag's at The Creative Connection during that.

So do I have any Minnesotan followers?  If yes, please share good sales..  If not, what is your favorite sale to go to where you are?



Fashion Trucks

Do you love watching The Great Food Truck Race on Food Network?  I do!  I love the food trucks.....  So when I saw the article in Lucky Magazine on fashion trucks I was all over that!

Le Fashion Truck  has a cute pink truck, I would just love to drive it all over!  I am drawn to anything pink.

Check out Wanderlust, they are in Portland, Oregon... shoot, wish I would have known about them when I lived there!!



Here is another cute one...... The Vintage Mobile.

 I LOVE that vintage green bus!!

Spring is almost here!  What projects are you working on for spring/summer?

Root Vegetables

I have always wanted to try them.... celery root, rutabaga, turnips... you see on Iron Chef America, the chefs make parsnip puree.  It all sounds so good.  But I have no idea how to prepare any of them and I am actually scared of what root veggies will taste like. 

I tried beets once and they tasted like dirt.  I wish I liked beets because they are so healthy for you!  I follow a blog, DIY Natural, and today is a post on Root Vegetables!  So I'm going to take the plunge and buy some root veggies and try the two recipes.  Also in the comments section there is another recipe that sounds so so good.  A warm hearty soup.  I love soup! 

We are expecting a blizzard tomorrow, so I am going to cook some up and watch the snow!

Do you ladies have any recipes with root vegetables?  Are they good?

Where Women Create

Hello
I have two issues of Where Women Create that I have yet to read.  Normally that does not happen.  But I have been so busy with the holidays, sickness, hubby traveling....etc..  So I brought both issues on vacation and am flipping through them now, it is absolute relaxation sitting on the beach, with the ocean waves in the background, looking at my favorite magazine. 

I am looking at the Feb/Mar/Apr 2012 issue now and it is so inspiring!  I have new Lollibag designs turning in my head.  I can't wait to get home and start sewing again!  I love seeing "studio" spaces and where women design their wares.  I am so excited to get my space finished.  It is the attic space above our garage.  We just put the sheetrock in....stay tuned :)

Aloha!